The present invention relates generally to gaming apparatus useful in arcade-style games. In the past, arcade-style games have been simple in nature and directed primarily at children. In one such game, where the object is to maneuver a car-shaped game piece on a rotating surface, children are offered a chance to simulate driving, as they attempt to keep a car inside the boundaries of a track painted on a rotating surface. The child is then rewarded with points, tickets, or other indicia of success, the amount of which may depend upon how long the child is able to keep the car within the boundaries of the track. These games generally fall into two main categories: skill games and competition games. In a skill game, a player is generally pitted against a task, such as keeping a car within track boundaries or shooting at a target, and rewarded based upon the performance of that task. In a competition game, multiple players are primarily pitted against each other and rewarded based upon the relative performance of each player. The relative performance may be determined by simultaneous play or by competing against another player""s score or performance.
Recently, commercial places of amusement such as restaurants with arcades and large game facilities have become more prevalent. These facilities may cater to adults as well as children, or perhaps primarily just adults. As such, there is a demand for games involving a higher level of skill. Presently, arcade-style games utilize switches or on/off sensors to determine success or failure. Some games use multiple sensors to account for different levels of success. In a competition game, where one player may be pitted against another player or several players, these switches or sensors are often used to move an indicator, such as a racecar or a toy horse, along a separate path or track towards a finish line or other predetermined destination. The indicator moves at a fixed speed when a switch or sensor is operated by the associated player, and does not move when a player is not operating that switch or sensor. There is presently, however, no technology for displaying and rewarding fractional success by moving the indicator at a variable speed that corresponds to the performance of the player.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide arcade-style competition games that provide a greater challenge and reward players more in accordance with their particular performance in a game by measuring the players"" fractional success and displaying their relative performance accordingly.
The present invention includes gaming apparatus, gaming devices, and gaming systems. The present invention may also be used to upgrade or retrofit existing devices or apparatus, using methods and components described herein or known in the art.
A preferred embodiment of an arcade-style competition game of the present invention, in which one or more players seek to advance indicators of progress, comprises a plurality of individual competition games, wherein each individual competition game contains a player-controlled device. Each player-controlled device has an associated feedback device that is used to determine the performance of the player of that individual game. Indicators of progress, preferably one for each individual game, are also included in the competition game. Each indicator of progress is adapted to advance along a path toward a destination at a variable rate of speed. The rate of speed at which an indicator of progress advances is determined by the performance of one of the players in a respective individual competition game, as measured by the appropriate feedback device. A processor may be used to receive data from the feedback devices, make a determination of performance, and send appropriate signals to the indicators of progress. The game preferably ends when one of the indicators of progress reaches its respective predetermined destination.
Also included in the present invention is a racing competition game in which one or more players seek to advance indicators of progress. The competition game comprises a plurality of surfaces, each of the surfaces having a racing track depicted thereon. The game has a plurality of actuators, each actuator adapted to rotate a respective one of the surfaces about a respective central axis on command. A plurality of first feedback devices is included, each of the first feedback devices in communication with a respective actuator. Each first feedback device is adapted to determine the rotational position of a respective surface. The game also comprises a plurality of game pieces, each game piece positioned substantially adjacent to a respective surface. For each game piece, the competition game preferably has an associated steering mechanism. Each steering mechanism may then be adapted to move a respective game piece over a predetermined range of a respective surface.
The competition game also comprises a plurality of second feedback devices, each of the second feedback devices in communication with a respective steering mechanism and adapted to determine the lateral position of a respective game piece relative to a respective surface. A processor is used to receive data from the feedback devices and make a determination of performance. A plurality of indicators of progress is also included, each indicator of progress adapted to advance along a respective path on a secondary monitor at a variable rate. The variable rate at which an indicator moves is determined by the performance signal sent by the processor.
Although described with respect to motorized vehicle-inspired racing games, it is to be appreciated that the present invention may also be used in other arcade-style competition games, including but not limited to games based upon horse racing, airplanes, space ships, or other movable objects, water jets, air guns, and other game component firing or launching mechanisms. The present invention may also be used in other competition games, where the accuracy or skill of a player over a period of time may be determined in a relative sense by multiple skill regions, instead of a simple one-sensor, stop-or-go approach.